One time Pixar golden boy Andrew Stanton (Finding Nemo, Wall-E) saw his stock plummet with the release of colossal box office disappointment John Carter. Yet a vastly underrated fantasy adventure John Carter is with its blending of sci-fi mythology, action adventure and a fish out of water story into an epic package. Such filmmaking qualities that Stanton displayed in John Carter is what’s needed for the multi-tiered stories of the Star Wars variety, not to mention Stanton’s experience with special effects.

#9

NEILL BLOMPKAMP

With District 9 South African filmmaker Neill Blompkamp gave the sci-fi genre a shake, rattle and roll with his documentary style approach to the alien invasion film. Now while the Star Wars films do not need shaky cam filmmaking to make it relevant, what it does need is a passionate, innovative and intelligent genre filmmaker like Blomkamp to make the series bounce again, something he knows how to do by adding stakes to his drama and excitement to his action scenes.

#8

GUILLERMO DEL TORO

The creature feature filmmaking antics of Mexican director Guillermo Del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth, Hellboy) would fit perfectly in the Star Wars universe. After all, these are the films that gave us Darth Vader, Jabba the Hutt and Yoda, and Del Toro is sure to add to the pedigree of out-of-this-world Star Wars characters with his unlimited imagination. Just as vital is Del Toro’s talent for directing films where the story is just as important as the special effects, with Del Toro’s worlds just as rich in theme as it is in visuals.

#7

MATTHEW VAUGHN

Ever since making his directing debut with crime flick Layer Cake, Matthew Vaughn has made a name for himself with one confident film after another, his last – X-Men: First Class – successfully revitalising a tired franchise. It’s that type of touch that’s needed on Star Wars, with George Lucas’ world the perfect sci-fi playground for Vaughn to delve into his love for fantastical, complicated characters.

#6

LEE UNKRICH

With fellow Pixar wizards Brad Bird and Andrew Stanton making the jump to live action, it’s now time for Toy Story 3 director Lee Unkrich to do the same and what better way to make a jump to the land of the living than as the director of a Star Wars movie? It would be to the series’ advantage, with Unkrich proving himself to be one of modern cinemas great storytellers who’ll be able to juggle the many different characters and plotlines that comes with a Star Wars movie.

#5

J.J. ABRAMS

Director/producer/writer (and geek god) J.J. Abrams did the impossible and re-launched the Star Trek franchise to the applause of Trek-heads and novices alike. With such lengthy history behind the Star Wars universe, Abrams would be apt to take on directing a new Star Wars movie without succumbing to any fanboy pressure and much like …Trek will create a film respectful of the series origins but with a life of its own.

#4

PETER JACKSON

Much like Star Wars in the late 70s/early 80s, The Lord of the Rings was the cinematic picture event for those in the early naughties. It is filmmaker Peter Jack that made it so, taking J.R. Tolkien’s classic novel and adapting it into masterful cinema. If given the opportunity, there is no limit to what Jackson could do with sci-fi fantasy so dense and characters as memorable as those in the Star Wars universe, not to mention Jackson’s technical wizardry which has him as one of the best SFX directors working today, a vital attribute for any would be Star Wars director.

#3

JOSS WHEDON

Fanboy favourite Joss Whedon is no stranger to sci-fi space adventures, with his short lived TV series Firefly and its movie spin-off Serenity highlights in the sub-genre. Now thanks to box-office phenom The Avengers, Whedon has positioned himself as an in demand filmmaker who knows how to direct films with a mass budget, featuring well established characters/environment and brings a confidence that he won’t deliver a sub-par movie, like say, the Star Wars prequels.

#2

BRAD BIRD

Brad Bird is one of those rare filmmakers who transitioned from animation to live filmmaking without a hitch.

His three animated releases – The Iron Giant, The Incredibles and Ratatouille – stand as exceptional works in the genre. But perhaps more important to this subject is Bird’s helming of Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, the fourth film in the series where thanks to Bird’s direction also makes it the best (so far), with Bird’s knack for creating whiz-bang action sequences on top of compelling story raising the bar on a well-seasoned franchise.

Take that talent to the Star Wars universe and only good things can happen, with Bird sure to create action scenes as invigorating as the original Star Wars “dogfight” sequence and give back some soul to (thanks to George Lucas’ direction) an increasingly digitised and empty universe.

#1

STEVEN SPIELBERG

It’s the combination that never happened: Steven Spielberg directing a Star Wars movie. That George Lucas refused to let it happened adds another negative to his legacy, for if any director was suited to direct a space opera complete with ground breaking special effects work and strong themes of family, it would be Spielberg.

There is no need to list the Oscar winner’s track record, since it speaks for itself. What does need to be mentioned is that at the age of 66, the chance for Spielberg to direct a Star Wars movie without his friend George Lucas breathing down his neck, is limited.

So let’s hope Mr. Spielberg ceases the mantle, drops plans to make Indiana Jones 5, and take that trip to a galaxy far, far away. Now is the time to make it happen.